Line stretcher and support.



PATENTED JULY 24, 1906.

R. M. OLAPP. LINE STRETGHER AND SUPPORT.

APPLICATION FILED OUT. 8, 1904.

TH: NORRIS PETERS c0, WASHINGTON, n. c.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LINE STRETCHER AND SUPPORT- Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed October 8, 1904. Serial No. 227,741.

Patented July 24, 1906.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, ROBERT M. OLAPP, a citizen of the United States, residing at Alhambra, in the county of Los Angeles and State of California, have invented new and useful Improvements in Line Stretchers and Supports, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates more particularly to a combined stretcher and support for a clothes-line and the object thereof is to provide a portable support and stretcher which may be attached to the line at any point and by means of which any slack in the line may be taken out of the same, and thereafter the supporter and stretcher will be firmly attached to the line and not liable to be accidentally separated therefrom. I accomplish these objects by the apparatus described herein and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of a clothes-line with my improved support and stretcher applied thereto. Fig. 2 is an enlarged view of one of my combined stretchers and support with a fragment of a line therein. Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section of Fig. 2, taken on a line at one side of the line-stretcher, the supporting-pole being shown in elevation and partly broken away. Fig. 4 is a detail of a part of the stretching mechanism.

In the drawings I have shown my invention as applied to a clothes-line and will describe it herein as applied to that purpose, although it may be used for supporting and stretching other lines, such as telephone-lines and other like lines.

The shaft 5 may be made of wood and may be round or square or any other shape, as desired. The bottom 6 is preferably sharpened, so that it will better engage the ground 7. On the top of the shaft is a socket 8, which is secured thereon by a screw-eye 9, or suitable means may beused for securing a socket upon the shaft. To the socket is secured the upwardly and outwardly extending arms 10 and 11, which are bifurcated at the to ,for the reception of the line 12, which ine is secured at the ends thereof to posts 13 and 14, projecting from the ground, in which they are firmly embedded. Passing through the screw-eye 9 is the stretcherrod 15, the upper end of which is formed into a hook 15, which is adapted to hook over the line. The lower end of the stretcher-rod is pivotally secured to the clamp 16, which is slidably mounted upon the shaft. This clamp is a little larger than the shaft, so that it may slide freely thereon, and opposite its union with the stretcher-rod is provided with s ur 16, which spur is adapted to engage t e shaft and prevent the clam slipping up thereon when the slack of the ine has been taken up by the stretcher-rod, as shown in the drawings. This clamp and the stretcherrod are preferably made of heavy wire bent to the proper shape. The socket and supporting-arms are preferably made of malleable cast-iron, the arms having strengthening-ribs on their under sides, as shown. If desired ,the arms could be made of wood and the arms suitably bent and integral with the shaft, or they could be nailed or otherwise fastened to the shaft.

In the use of my supporter and stretcher the furcations of the arms are caused to straddle the line, and the hooked end of the stretcher-rod is then placed over the line, and the same is drawn downwardly between the arms until the line is perfectly taut, when the clamp is pushed downwardly until the spur thereof firmly engages the shaft, thereby preventing the stretcher-rod from moving upwardly. The clothes 17 may then be hung upon the line, which is supported by the arms and shaft from saggin It will be seen by this construction that have rovided a stretcher and support for a clot esline that is firml attache thereto and that should the win blow the clothes and line upwardly the line will carry its support, which will always reach the ground, when the wind falls, in proper position to support the line and keep the clothes from touching the ground. It will also be observed that where the line is not a very long one it is not necessary that the shaft shall strike the ground, as by taking up the slack therein by means of the stretcher-rod the clothes wil be prevented from striking the ground. Where long lines are used, as many of these stretcher-supports may be used as is necessary to support the weight of the line with the clothes thereon.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. Aline stretcher and support com rising a shaft; arms secured to the top of sai shaft, said arms havin slits in the top thereof for the rece tion 0 the line; a clamp slidably mounte on said shaft; and a stretcher-rod IIO pivotally secured to said clamp, said rod having a hook on its other end.

2. A line stretcher and support comprising a shaft; a socket secured on the top of said shaft, arms having slits in the top thereof se cured to said socket; a guide secured to said shaft j a stretcher-rod slidably mounted in said guide said rod having a hook on its up" per end and a clamp slidably mounted upon said shaft and pivota'blly connected with said stretcher-rod, said clar'np having means to engage the shaft to prevent it from acct dentally moving upwardly thereon;

3. line stretcher and support comprising a shaft extending from the line to the ground I 5 11 Witness that I claim the foregoing I 20 have hereunto subscribed my name this 26th day of September, 1904.

o ROBERT M. CLAPP.

Witnesses:

G. E; HARPHAM, E. A. STRAUsE'. 

